


Admirer

by thenakedbearlady



Series: Ladrien June 2019 [22]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Ladrien June
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-30
Updated: 2019-06-30
Packaged: 2020-05-31 05:45:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19419685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thenakedbearlady/pseuds/thenakedbearlady
Summary: Some secrets come out.





	Admirer

**Author's Note:**

> Two updates in an hour and more to come.

The thud of the door as Marinette bolted from the Césaire apartment was jarring, halting all chatter. Nino and Alya glanced at each other as a knowing look passed between them confusing Adrien even more. “That was… odd?” He wasn’t really sure what happened, he hadn’t heard any ringing from her phone before she jumped up and though Marinette could be flaky this seemed a bit extreme.

“I should have known this would happen”, Alya sighed, rubbing her temples. “She was trying to get out of coming over last night and I kind of pressured her into it. I’ll have to apologize later.” She snuggled closer to Nino, face pursed guiltily.

Adrien frowned, hand automatically reaching to his phone. He hadn’t noticed at the time, but in hindsight, Marinette _had_ been pretty silent through all of their messaging. Her hasty exit now just solidified the idea that she just didn’t _want_ to be there. “Do you think she feels left out?” Adrien asked, his voice laced with concern.

The couple in front of him exchanged another worried look before Nino turned to him, his voice careful, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, what if she feels like a fifth wheel? It’s gotta be hard being around two couples all the time when she’s still pining for the guy she likes.” As Adrien spoke Alya’s eyes grew wider and wider.

“You knew?! For how long?” Nino had to almost hold her back as she scooted to the edge of the couch, gaze wild.

Adrien backed away, a little intimidated by the glint in her eyes. “Well, it was after Zombizou”, he scratched that back of his head sheepishly, trying to think back to the awkward double date and important events around it. “But before Style Queen. I think.”

“Dude!” Nino was no longer gripping Alya, rather, he jumped up from the couch himself. “You’ve known that long and you didn’t _do_ anything? Uncool.”

“What?” Adrien blinked, confused. _Was he supposed to do something?_ He wanted to help Marinette, sure. She was sweet and funny and cute and only deserved the absolute best. He just didn’t know _how_ to help.

“Is this a bad time?” All eyes snapped to Ladybug who was peeking from around the balcony door looking like she was about to run away at any second.

“It’s fine”, Adrien motioned for her to join them, which she did reluctantly. “You can lend us a hand.”

“I don’t know if this is appropriate Adrien”, Alya started, wrinkling her nose, “No offense Ladybug.”

“No, it’s perfect.” Adrien took Ladybug’s hand, beaming at her. “You can help us figure out how to hook Marinette up with her crush.”

“What, no! Marinette doesn’t want to be in a throuple, she loves you!” Ayla’s declaration sucked all the air out the room, her chest still heaving with fury. Ladybug snatched her hand away from Adrien like she’d been burned. Nino glared at the couch, lips pressed in a firm line. Adrien was silent, his now empty hand dangling as he stared dumbly at Alya.

“Huh?”

It took her a second to realize that she revealed something she shouldn’t have. In her defense, she tried to recover, waving her arms frantically, “I didn’t mean that, or, well, what did _you_ mean?”

He couldn’t quite wrap his mind around this revelation. Marinette liked him. She _loved_ him. And that connected so many dots about their friendship. Why she tripped over her words around him constantly. Why she was always blushing. Why the Valintine’s card was in _her handwriting_. Plagg was right, he was an idiot. “She doesn’t have a crush on Luka, does she?”

Nino shook his head, biting his lip, but Alya furrowed her brow, scowling, “Did she tell you she had a crush on him?”

“Well, no”, Adrien hedged, grasping to hold on to the scenario he’d built up despite it dissolving in front of him.

“Then why would you think that?”

That jolted Adrien, indignation rising. It wasn’t a ludicrous idea to think she liked him. Luka was handsome and gentle and kind, perfect crush material. “She went on that date with him.”

“You were there too?” Alya squinted at him incredulously.

“It was kind of obvious”, Nino was still avoiding his gaze as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “I mean, Marinette’s only shy around _you_ , dude.”

Adrien flushed, not sure what to do with this information. It wasn’t unpleasant to imagine Marinette having feelings for him. It was flattering even, especially since she’d confessed to Chat Noir as well. And Marinette was the ideal girlfriend - caring and fun and beautiful - but none of that mattered. He loved Ladybug, had since he met her, he couldn’t even imagine anyone else as a romantic partner, no matter how wonderful they were.

A cough interrupted the oppressive silence as Ladybug lunged for the remote, a painfully wide smile plastered on despite the panic in her eyes. “Why don’t we see what’s on TV?” She asked around a manic bout of giggles. She didn’t wait for a response, the screen flicking on to reveal Nadja Chamack on TVi about to start an interview, which was normal. What wasn’t normal was the guest on the show, a sneering Lila Rossi. The remote clattered to the ground.


End file.
